"THE 11th HOUR" WITH BRIAN
WILLIAMS STARTS NOW.
>>> GOOD EVENING ONCE AGAIN.
DAY 29 OF THE BIDEN
ADMINISTRATION.
SOMEWHERE BETWEEN 4 MILLION AND
5 MILLION OF OUR FELLOW
AMERICANS IN THE STATE OF TEXAS
ARE SUFFERING THROUGH A THIRD
FRIGID NIGHT WITHOUT POWER,
HEAT, IN MANY CASES WITHOUT
RUNNING WATER OR FOOD.
IT IS STRAIGHT UP THE 1800s TO
WANT IN PARTS OF TEXAS, FAMILIES
USING CANDLES FOR LIGHT, MELTING
SNOW FOR WATER, BURNING
CARDBOARD AND IN SOME DIRE CASES
BURNING THEIR OWN BUSTED UP
FURNITURE TO STAY WARM.
ARCTIC COLD DELIVERED BY TWO
STORMS HAS CREATED DISASTROUS
CONDITIONS BLANKETING MUCH OF
TEXAS IN SNOW AND ICE WHILE
PLUNGING PARTS OF THE STATE INTO
DEEP FREEZING COLD.
THAT WAS NATURE ROLE IN THIS.
THE REST CAN BE ATTRIBUTED TO
THE HUMANS WHO RUN WHAT PASSES
FOR THE TEXAS POWER GRID.
MANY HOMES HAVE BEEN WITHOUT
POWER SINCE THE BEGINNING OF
THIS WEEK AND HAVE NO INDICATION
OF WHEN IT WILL COME BACK ON.
NOW THE PEOPLE THERE ARE DOING
WHATEVER THEY CAN DO SURVIVE.
>> WELL, IT STARTED -- I HAVE
THREE CATS AND A DOG, SOME KIDS.
WE LOST POWER, PUT THE KIDS IN A
DIFFERENT LOCATION WITH FAMILY
MEMBERS AND THEN WE’VE JUST BEEN
SLEEPING IN THE CLOSET WITH MY
PETS BY CANDLELIGHT.
WE PUT A SHEET UP OTHER THE
DOOR.
BUT TODAY IT’S JUST -- WE GOT --
WE’RE TRYING TO GET OUT TO PLANO
TO MY PARENTS HOUSE.
IT’S JUST RIDICULOUS.
CAN’T FIND GAS ANYWHERE.
I DON’T EVEN KNOW WHAT CITY I’M
IN RIGHT NOW TO BE HONEST.
>> THAT’S HOW PEOPLE ARE LIVING
TONIGHT.
THIS AFTERNOON ONE TEXAS MEMBER
OF CONGRESS PAINTED A DIRE
PORTRAIT OF THE SITUATION,
SAYING MEMBER OF HIS DISTRICT,
HUSBAND CONSTITUENTS ARE NOW
FACING A HARSH REALITY.
>> WE ARE FACING A REAL CRISIS
HERE IN DALLAS WHERE FOLKS ARE
WORRIED ABOUT THINGS LIKE
HYPOTHERMIA, CARBON MONOXIDE
POISONING.
WE HAVE SOME FOLKS WHO HAVE BEEN
WITHOUT POWER SINCE SUNDAY
NIGHT.
WE DON’T HAVE AN ACCURATE IDEA
OF WHEN ALL THE POWER WILL COME
BACK ONLINE.
THESE FAILURES ARE FAILURES OF
OUR STATE GOVERNMENT, FAILURES
OF OUR REGULATORY AGENCIES AND
FAILURES OF OUR POWER GENERATORS
TO PREPARE FOR THIS.
>> AS TEXAS UTILITY OFFICIALS
STRUGGLE TO GET THE POWER GRID
BACK ONLINE AND EXPLAIN ALL
THIS, THE STATE’S REPUBLICAN
GOVERNOR DECIDED THIS WOULD BE A
GOOD TIME TO BLAME RENEWABLE
ENERGY FOR THE OUTAGES.
>> THIS SHOWS HOW THE GREEN NEW
DEAL WOULD BE A DEADLY DEAL FOR
THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
TEXAS IS BLAST WITH MULTIPLE
SOURCES OF ENERGY SUCH AS
NATURAL GAS AND OIL AND NUCLEAR
AS WELL AS SOLAR AND WIND.
BUT YOU SAW FROM WHAT TRACE
SAID, AND THAT IS OUR WIND AND
OUR SOLAR GOT SHUT DOWN.
AND THEY WERE COLLECTIVELY MORE
THAN 10% OF OUR POWER GRID.
IT JUST SHOWS THAT FOSSIL FUEL
IS NECESSARY FOR THE STATE OF
TEXAS AS WELL AS OTHER STATES TO
MAKE SURE THAT WE WILL BE ABLE
TO HEAT OUR HOMES IN THE
WINTERTIME AND COOL OUR HOMES IN
THE SUMMERTIME.
>> SO, HE FLOATED OUT THAT
THEORY.
"THE WASHINGTON POST" POINTS
OUT, QUOTE, THE GOVERNOR’S
ARGUMENTS WERE CONTRADICTED BY
HIS OWN ENERGY DEPARTMENT, WHICH
OUTLINED HOW MOST OF TEXAS’S
ENERGY LOSSES COME FROM FAILURE
TO UPDATE THE LINES.
ABBOTT TRIED TO EXPLAIN HIS
FALSE CLAIMS.
>> THE FACT IS EVERY SOURCE OF
POWER
POWER THE STATE OF TEXAS HAS
ACCESS TO HAS BEEN COMPROMISED
BECAUSE OF THE ULTRA COLD
TEMPERATURE OR BECAUSE OF
EQUIPMENT FAILURES.
WHAT I MADE CLEAR WAS THE FACT
THAT IF WE RELIED SOLELY UPON
GREEN ENERGY THAT WOULD BE A
CHALLENGE.
BUT IN TEXAS WE DID NOT RELY
SOLELY UPON GREEN ENERGY.
WE HAVE ACCESS TO ALL SOURCES OF
ENERGY.
>> THAT’S WHAT HE MADE CLEAR.
ANOTHER TEXAS OFFICIAL’S
RESPONSE TO HIS COMMUNITY’S
OUTAGES APPEAR TO HAVE COST HIM
HIS JOB.
HERE’S HOW TIM BOYD REACTED TO
THEIR INQUIRIES TUESDAY ON A
FACEBOOK POST THAT HAS SINCE
BEEN TAKEN DOWN.
QUOTE, NO ONE OWES YOU OR YOUR
FAMILY ANYTHING, NOR IS IT THE
LOCAL GOVERNMENT’S
TO BE DONE.
>> PETER BAKER, THAT’S WHERE WE
COME TO YOU.
AND ALREADY TONIGHT REPUBLICANS
IN OUR WORLD AND OUR NATION
WHERE EVERYTHING GETS DIVIDED UP
RED AND BLUE, WHEN WE LOOK
AROUND TEXAS, WHEN PEOPLE LOOK
FOR FOLKS TO BLAME, ALL YOU CAN
SEE IS Rs AFTER PEOPLE’S NAMES.
BUT A LOT OF THE REPUBLICANS ARE
TRYING TO STAY ON BRAND.
THIS CAME OUT OF MINORITY LEADER
McCARTHY’S HOUSE, THOSE WATCHING
ON THE LEFT MAY SEE THE
SITUATION IN TEXAS AS AN
OPPORTUNITY TO EXPAND THEIR
TOP-DOWN RADICAL PROPOSALS.
DON’T MESS WITH TEXAS AND DON’T
LET A CRISIS GO TO WASTE.
HE SUBTWEETED TEXANS WOULD BE
WITHOUT ELECTRICITY FOR LONGER
THAN THREE DAYS TO KEEP THE
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT OUT OF THEIR
BUSINESS.
GOVERNOR PERRY SAID, PARTLY
RHETORICALLY.
I WOULD LOVE IT IF ALL OF US
COULD USE THAT "PARTLY
RHETORICALLY" IN COMMENTS WE
MAKE IN THE PUBLIC SPHERE.
I’M JUST WONDERING WHEN THERE
COMES RECRIMINATIONS FOR THIS,
WHAT WILL HAPPEN?
BECAUSE THE LIST IS LONG.
>> WELL, THAT’S RIGHT.
LOOK, YOU KNOW, WHAT WE SEE HERE
UNFORTUNATELY DURING A CRISIS IS
IN ADDITION TO ACTUALLY TRYING
TO TACKLE THE SUBSTANCE OF THE
ISSUE AND PUT POWER BACK ON AND
GET PEOPLE SOME WARMTH AND POWER
BACK IN THEIR HOMES, WE SEE
IMMEDIATELY BOTH SIDES RUNNING
RAMPANT.
DEMOCRATS SEE AN OPPORTUNITY THE
TEXAS WHERE REPUBLICANS HAVE
BEEN IN CHARGE FOR A NUMBER OF
YEARS.
REPUBLICANS OF COURSE TRYING TO
SAY THIS IS A SIGN OF WHY THE
GREEN NEW DEAL WOULDN’T WORK
WHEN IN FACT THE NATURAL GAS
INFRASTRUCTURE AS MUCH AS
ANYTHING ELSE THAT’S IN TROUBLE
BECAUSE OF THE COLD.
SO, YOU KNOW, IT’S VERY TYPICAL,
I HATE TO SAY, OF TODAY’S
POLITICAL ENVIRONMENT.
RATHER THAN DEAL WITH THE CRISIS
FIRST AND THEN COME TO A
RATIONAL DEBATE LATER AS TO WHAT
CAUSED IT AND WHAT CAN BE DONE
TO MAKE IT BETTER.